Villagers seek to curb new spaces

Longbeach Village residents asked the town for additional parking restrictions earlier this year. They got their wish, when the Longboat Key Town Commission passed an ordinance Nov. 4, establishing new rules.

But last week, when the town painted the curb of the side of Broadway where parking is prohibited yellow and painted white lines establishing parking spaces on the south side of the street, some residents felt the town crossed the line.

“Everybody I’ve spoken to says it makes it look ugly as sin,” said Village resident James Braha, who emailed Mayor Jim Brown to complain about the new spaces.

Braha wrote:

“The unsightly road changes on Broadway in the Village, I must say, are quite ugly. I suppose it solves the parking problem caused by the never-ending expansion of Mar Vista, but it turns our quiet, quaint community into something resembling a shopping mall parking lot. I don’t recall having heard any plans beforehand about these changes.”

Braha told the Longboat Observer that the changes make Broadway look “very commercial” and said he has spoken with seven or eight neighbors who agree.

Another resident, Paula Skillman, also emailed Brown about the spaces.

“When I arrived back on LBK all I heard was people talking about putting the wires underground, to make the island more beautiful. Then I drive down Broadway yesterday afternoon and was shocked to see UGLY white parking spaces,” Skillman wrote.

Another resident, Bobby Nunnally, said he first noticed the parking spaces last week when he turned into the Village from Gulf of Mexico Drive.

“To me it just takes away from the Village,” he said. “I was just shocked at what they did.”

“It’s just too bad to do that to our pretty little Village,” Bonnie Dallinger said. “Signs would have done the job instead of yellow and white lines everywhere.”

Brown said the spaces were a matter of enforcement.

“They asked us to put one-sided parking in, and they asked us to enforce it,” Brown said. “A yellow curb is the international sign of no-parking.”

“After several meetings and studies, the town commission voted to follow the request of the majority of citizens of the Village and install the requested controls. Perhaps you were not aware of the extensive effort that we went through at the request of the majority of Village residents. These requests and subsequent changes were made to make the Village a safer place to live,” Brown wrote in a Nov. 21 response to Skillman’s email.

Mark Richardson, the town’s streets, facilities, parks and a recreation manager, said the colors used on Broadway are standard yellow and white colors used to designate where parking is prohibited and allowed.

The town’s contractor had been instructed to paint spaces further east on the road to Moore’s Stone Crab Restaurant and also yellow curbs for areas of Poinsettia and Lois avenues where parking is prohibited, however, the contractor did not complete the painting.

As the result of resident feedback, the town told its contractor to put the assignment on hold while it discusses alternative ways of marking streets with residents.

The new Village parking ordinance includes the following restrictions:

• No parking on the entire north side of Linley Street from Longboat Drive South to Lois Avenue;

• No parking for the entire north side of Broadway Street from Palm Drive to Bayside Drive; 

• No parking from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. on the entire south side of Broadway from Palm Drive to Bayside Drive; 

• No parking on the east side of the street on Lois Avenue between Broadway and Russell Street; 

• No parking on the eastside of street on Poinsetta Drive between Broadway and Russell Street.

Village residents generally supported the ordinance, although many have said it’s a starting point and want the commission to address parking issues again next year.